Enjoyable Experiences In NWA

June 30 was my last official day of work as a school principal in Missouri. I was eligible for retirement after that and chose to move to Northwest Arkansas.

I don’t like the word retirement, because I plan to keep working, but that’s not my point here.

My point is that I chose to move to the NWA area because, like so many of you, I know it is a great place to live.

I have always intended to continue teaching and writing throughout my life, and having grown up in Arkansas, and being well-acquainted with the great attributes of our state, Northwest Arkansas seemed like the perfect place.

Since moving here, I’ve had several interesting and enjoyable experiences, and what follows is a rundown of several of those, in no particular order:

COVERING THE MILES

The Razorback Greenway is an excellent opportunity to exercise and to enjoy the outdoors. I’ve spent a lot of time on it already and I wish I could say I was in good enough shape to bicycle 25 miles at a time, but I’m not there yet. For now, however, I enjoy logging a number of miles on it by simply walking. In some locations, however, it needs more signs to keep you from accidentally wandering away from the trail.

EDUCATING OUR YOUTH

Northwest Arkansas has great schools that are doing some great things. I have visited several of them and can speak with some level of expertise on this because of my own background in education. It’s great to see hard-working teachers who care about kids and who take their job seriously. It’s also good to see that so many communities take pride in their schools. It shows. Northwest Arkansas schools have some of the finest facilities I’ve seen anywhere.

WOO PIG SOOIE – I have followed Razorback football all of my life and have attended several games over the years. But I’ve never lived this close to all of the action and it’s a lot of fun. My oldest son and I attended the Arkansas win over Texas State on Sept. 17 and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I’ll be back for more.

PATRIOTISM IS IN STYLE

Before the Texas State game got underway, as a part of Military Appreciation Day at Reynolds Razorback Stadium, a huge American flag was unfolded over a large area of the field and they started playing America the Beautiful. Without any prompting and without any announcement about the flag or the patriotic music, the entire crowd stood up and started cheering. I was overwhelmed with pride, not just for being an American, but because while some people today won’t even stand for the national anthem, people in Arkansas love their country and know how to show it.

AMERICAN STRENGTH

Moments later, after the national anthem, two Black Hawk helicopters flew from the north to the south over Razorback Stadium, their rotor blades whipping the air as they majestically moved over the field in a great show of power, much to the delight of the cheering crowd. The Black Hawks were from the Arkansas Air National Guard in Little Rock.

GOOD FOOD

There are so many choices of great restaurants in the area (as most of you know) and I’ve been glad to explore the landscape in that regard. I’m not going to give you a list of all the top restaurants in NWA, because I’ve not been to them all. But here are some that are certainly worth considering: Greenhouse Grille in Fayetteville (excellent); the Pedaler’s Pub in Bentonville (on the Razorback Greenway, unique experience, tasty food); Susan’s in Springdale (just darn good food); AQ Chicken in Springdale (good home cooking); and Neal’s in Springdale (more good home cooking). I know there are many others, and I may not have listed your favorites. But that’s a pretty darn good list.

POWER LUNCH

Cross Church at Pinnacle Hills in Rogers hosts the NWA Summit each Thursday, which is a business luncheon where guest speakers share insights each week. I have found it to be extremely encouraging, and a good place to meet others from the area. Details are at nwasummit.com.

SQUIRREL POWER

On Saturday, Sept. 10, the World Champion Squirrel Cookoff was held in downtown Bentonville. I don’t know how to comment on that, except to say that the weather was beautiful, the crowd was large, and even though it attracted people from many states, it was truly a unique and enjoyable Arkansas experience.

GREAT READS

The Dickson Street Book Shop is a unique experience, for those who like to read (and I’m one of those people). OK, I must confess — I may have a book addiction —I purchase and read books all the time. A bookstore always gets my attention and so does Amazon. com. I had visited the bookstore on Dickson several times before I ever moved to NWA, and I’ve browsed the place several times thereafter. It is nothing extravagant; it has no area to relax and read and no coffee or cappuccino for the guests. It is just simply rows and rows of shelves stocked full of books. Some are simple paperbacks. Some are old and valuable antiques. Some are volumes published in recent years. But anyone who reads can find something there of interest. You won’t even miss the coffee.

So that’s it. Those items represent an informal rundown of my most memorable NWA experiences thus far. It is indeed a great place to live.